Scaling up cultured meat

By Jack Thornton, Postdoctoral Research Associate, Institute for Bioengineering, The University of Edinburgh

Livestock farming contributes over 14 % of greenhouse gas emissions, with the rate of meat production speeding past population growth rates, not to mention the ethical considerations associated with wholesale slaughter of cows, pigs, and lambs. Clearly, this is an urgent issue demanding action before the situation becomes more severe. Cultivation of meat derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) holds promise as a solution, however, current costs present a hurdle to industrial-scale applications. Therefore, the aim of this project was to identify the most cost-effective composition of cell culture medium by applying a statistical design of experiments (DOE) approach to optimisation.

Statistical DOE is a strategic methodology through which multiple parameters may be tested and compared to determine both the individual effects of variables and the interactions between factors which manifest a quantifiable difference in output. This approach produces detailed datasets with a lower resource cost compared to traditional one-factor-at-a-time approaches. The DOE experiments were performed by Dr Caitlin Connolly (Roslin Technologies) and Dr Laura Walls (The University of Edinburgh), the outcome of these tests, coupled with subsequent statistical analysis, resulted in an optimised cell culture medium composition that was over 60 % cheaper than the original formulation.

This finding was encouraging, yet the composition remained to be validated at monolayer and in small-scale bioreactors as a proof-of-concept that the cost reduction rendered acceptable cell culture conditions. Preliminary studies undertaken by Dr Laura Walls (The University of Edinburgh) and I demonstrated that the optimised medium maintained porcine iPSC growth rates in adherent monolayer cultures and in suspension within Applikon MiniBio 500 stirred-tank bioreactor cultures. These findings are extremely promising and further investigation into the newly formulated porcine iPSC culture medium and its impact on cell growth rate, survival, and maintenance of pluripotency are ongoing.

More information on this research may be found at www.leorioslab.org and www.roslintech.com